When to quit
by SomecallmeMichelle
Summary: (Merry/Tax) - Terry is not having a good week...Dana is piling on him, Mad Stan and a bunch of jokerz escaped prison AGAIN and he's pretty sure his mom is seeing someone...he's got to cope with it. And he thinks he might be developing feelings for his best friend...but, above all, he has to decide, what and when will he quit?
1. Chapter 1

"The hell's wrong with you McGinnis?" - The voice on the other side of the line demanded, yearned to know. Though the voice was tough, there was just a hint of concern...a hint of worry in her voice, that made Terry stop what he was doing and consider it.

The heck was wrong with him? Terry McGinnis was NOT having a good set of days...or rather, nights, as a kid he had heard tales from his dad about how Arkham was not much more than a paper jail - and criminals escaped it anytime. - and now the new jails, since Arkham Asylum/jail/ whatever it had been, was closed, seemed to be just as ineffective at keeping prisoners there. Even common crooks like Willie - who Terry had to admit, was not osp bad, if he had psychic powers he would also probably throw a car at Nash's face. - And Jokerz escaped.

But it was Mad Stanley that was the issue, the mad bomber, who everyone decided to call "Mad Stan" for some reason, had decided that Batman, or rather neo Batman, the vigilante that Terry secretly was was "too much" and in their encounters he often tried to blow him out to smitheerens. And failed. Badly.

Still annoying though,

So he sighed into the mask, the side microphone hearing out the vibrations and converting them into audio. - It was supposed to be the old man watching, always in communication, but on those long trips, there wasn't much he could do or say to him. So he often switched the mask on to Max, the tech wiz who had figured it out. She was a lot more fun to shake his voice at, quavering, and also had a lot more curves.

Yes Max had a lot of curves, an african american beauty, many at the school at where they studied look at that fine shaped ass and those swaying breasts, and the curvaceous shapes of her body and thought they wanted her. Though she didn't give any of it to anyone.

And Terrry often had to remind himself he had a girlfriend, because as much of a complication as his girlfriend Dana Tang was - Dana who always fought him and didn't know his secret, Dana who didn't have those ass shapes. - She was still his girl.

So when the new Batman sighed. Whether in annoyance, whether in tiredness, he couldn't imagine that Max could have a feel for his emotions.

"C'mon Terr, you beat most crooks in 3 or 4 movements. Mad Stanley is dim as a rock." - By the silence that followed and the sound of typing, Terry could imagine her, smiling, and he too smiled at the thought of Mad stan. She was probably just in some short shorts and old worn shirt, typing in her pc about some issue or other….it was maddening to think about.

"Both you and I know that's not the problem…" - Terry was suddenly jolted back to the present, or rather, what he should be thinking, work, by her words. Though the Batmobile drove itself through the skies of Gotham city, the city he had sworn to protect both to his mentor and ot himself, automatically, it was still good to keep an eye on things.

"You're worried about your future!" - Max was half right, of course Terry was worried about his future, he planned to stay in Gotham, keeping up Batman, protecting the innocent, the rich and the poor, the young and old, from the common enemies, the evil bad guys, the petty crooks. There was a shade of gray to it all. And he didn't operate entirely within the law, but he was doing his part.

So...no college education? Even Bruce wayne who …. shockingly had been the original Batman, had gotten countless degrees, spent years training his body after. For justice, for responsability, for a better city...Terry had started this superhero biz...young, maybe too young. How could he leave any of that behind? What? He'd go to classes in day, help Bruce around in the afternoon, take 2 or 3 hours to study, and then spend the night patrolling? He'd die in a week! He wouldn't be able to sleep!

Not that it mattered, anyhow since he was almost failing , he was so tired. Bruce had worked him hard, and he fell asleep in class, once or twice, or, if he had to admit, countless times. Luckily he didn't snore.

So all he could say was…"Yes...I am." - Max was very perceptive. Another sigh - "I don't know if I'll ever get to decide...stay and help people, go out? Every night I'm not out here" - He made a sweeping gesture, though she couldn't see it, probably. - "Is a night some thief, or murderer, or rapist, or someone gets away and hurts another."

That was not the whole truth anyway, he had gripping tightly, his sweaty brow, even if the suit was designed to allow him to maintain his temperature comfortably. He was also nervous. His mom was secretly shagging someone.

Oh he wouldn't have seen the signs. No he wouldn't, after all, his mom had been very careful sneaking and out at night, and excusing herself with work when caught. The bags under her eyes, the smell that couldn't be from anything else (Terry had once or twice done something with Dana, and it had made his room reek for hours, no matter what he put in there), the ways her eyes glowed…

He was being trained by the world's greatest detective, after all. If he didn't notice (or smell) those signs, then what could he possibly have learned. She seemed fuller...happier somehow.

And Terry realised that his father was dead,, and before that his father and mother had split up for years, ever since his little brother had been born pretty much. And he was a young adult...he only wanted the best for her, and if whatever man (or woman!) made her happy, made her so, then so be it.

He'd still act surprised when she told them and introduced the person, mailman, milkman, whatever clichê.

But it was like that.

Only a small infim part of him couldn't help but worry, he had seen so many cases of domestic disputes, that….well, it was ridiculous, she seemed happy, but he had that nagging worry that refused to leave. This was Gotham, where even district attorneys can be bad people. (Though not at that time)

"Thinking about your mom?" - Max was very perceptive, indeed, how did she….he hadn't shared any of those thoughts or feelings or suspicions with her. Did she even….how the fu….He let out a shocked gasp. It seemed Max had been doing a little digging of her own. Darn that Gibson!

"How did you?" - And as he set the Batplane computer to search for threats to the city, major ones, which was selfish of him, but he needed to have this conversation with Max, and someone getting mugged would only distract him from it. His eye slits in the suit narrowed. - "How did you even? What?" - He tried to laugh, to sound well, but she knew him too well to know that he was well.

"You're a terrible liar, Terr. And I do understand why you're upset. As for how I know about your mother? Feminine intuition. But your mother can handle herself. She grew to raise you for some years and I have a feeling you were a wild child! " - Terry laughed along with Max, it was true, from what he had heard from his mother, he had been one of those kids that didn't keep quiet for a minute. - "Now stop being an idiot savant and focus on your job, I don't want you getting killed."

"But…"

"No buts...why do you men always have to be so macho, so...women are not dandy flowers that can't handle themselves, geez!" - Max was talking through her headset, which was not as high quality as the headset put inside the Batman's suit, that converted waves into sound, and transmitted them over long distances, but he could tell she was annoyed.

"Max, I protect everybody, male, female, in between, it's my job,it's what I do, I don't care for gender." - He thought back to her body, to how close she had been when he carried her. And then he had to think of Dana. His brain seemed to lose focus sometimes when he thought of Max for some reason. But he had made a promise to Dana, and he would keep it.

She sighed.

"I'm sorry I jumped at you." - She relaxed, and it was audibly perceptible. - "Ya know those Kobra after gangs that have been left?"

Kobra had been the major threat that Terry had had to face as a super hero, they were terrorists and a whole book could be said about them, in fact, whole books were being written about them! Most of them speculative fanfiction. Since nobody wanted to come forward and admit to being Batman...endanger themselves and become a target...and of course nobody wanted to admit to have been a member of Kobra, those propped up everywhere. Not one got the full story right.

Some sub-sections still tried, trying to reorganise and restart the organization, even if the messiah of the organization was dead. It was a case to say " **Some people just don't know when to quit** "

Well, seeing as Max had been pretty closely affected by the ordeal she had volunteered to do the eletronic part and destroy their websites and forums. She had been caught reading them, despite Terry's warning.

:"They...don't treat women very well...and they had women members how did they agree to those hateful things"

Terry sighed, Max was pretty smart, if she wanted to discuss feminist ideas with him, well...he wouldn't be capable of fololwing.

"I don't know, some people just want comfort, even in the most unlikeliest of places"

She guessed that was true.

"Like you and Dana?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah...it's clear you and Dana are not meant for one another...you keep fighting and breaking up and getting back together, but what is it that the bats said to me, some people just want comfort!"

Terry was left without words.

"You know I can't break up with her...I've promised her I'd try seriously"

"As you do….for the 6th time...and then your Job" - She put air quotes over the last word. - "Gets in the way."

"Well I guess I'd need to find a girl who I could trust with my secret...a girl to fight alongside me, right?"

Max smiled.

"I guess you'd need to."

Terry was too cowardly to do anything about it, to say those simple words, even if he felt set up. He could fight and defeat 20 thugs in a battle, or a super villain, join the justice league unlimited or travel through time, but not utter those words.

"I gotta go."

He heard a gulp….he didn't know if it was disappointment or what...but he was afraid to take the next step.

"See you at school."

Max choked up.

"Y...yeah Terr, see you tomorrow."

 **Author's note:**

 **According to google docs this chapter is 1881 words long.**

 **Yeah...I've got some...cobwebs that I need to clear from my head, so first of all my way to cope with things is writing….maybe I'll look back at this in a couple and months, look at all I wrote and say "this is silly"**

 **But, right now, I'm going through a real hard time in life, where I've considered some real terrible things to myself, including...well it's too awful to say. I'm not here to gain pity, so I won't go into detail. It's why there were so many stories the last week (well that and the prompt challenge), misery breeds creativity. Merry has always been sort of my...safespace...but even then, I couldn't get myself to make 'em happy, not like this.**

 **But there is a chapter 2 to this story, maybe a chapter 3 as well depending on how things go, it's not a very long story and Terry has to deal with Mad Stan, Dana, and, of course face his mother.**

 **Nice little start though**


	2. Chapter 2

"I wonder...Mcginnis" - The man who hunched over the batmobile slash plane asked though he already knew the answer. - "Why my communication with you was suddenly cut off." - The former Batman still held a gaze that could scare anyone, and, even if hardened by his tough training regime, the new Batman was still unable to meet his gaze. What had he to say to his boss and, technically, mentor? That he had ditched him because he much prefered to talk to Maxine? Max Gibson, the girl with whom he spent so much time and….Right, he reminded himself, Dana Tang, he had a girlfriend already.

Somehow he had the feeling that the former batman, the old man Bruce Wayne already knew that that was why he had done what he had done. Turned of the headset contact only to tune it in to Max's phone number. It was a scrambled channel, so there was no risk of it being detected, and he was half sure Max was running her own scrambling programs on her own. - That girl had her own bright future ahead of her. - So there wasn't a risk of being detected.

Yet even without knowing if Bruce knew, Terry had the suspicion that yes, he did know. He couldn't be 100 percent sure, as he couldn't be 100 percent sure of anything in his life, the life that rocked and moved every day, and wasn't constant, as he was constantly assimilated by doubts, but this was almost a certainty. Bruce Wayne always ended up finding out about all his misdeeds as a superhero, or why he had done so. He had raised 3 kids, and Terry was not going to be the first to cheat him out on his wits.

"You know…" - Bruce's tone was casual, almost too casual, which made Terry immediately tense up. Bruce never spoke that way with him, he always spoke with an urgency or a rush, like someone was in danger, or, if not that tone, then with the tone of voice of an angry punishing father, rough, because he knew he could handle it. - "The batsuit has plenty of sensors…" - Terry's mind began to jump...of course Bruce could monitor his every sign from his position, and even if Max (Terry's heart jumped a bit as he thought of her), managed to turn to turn all that monitoring off, Bruce would simply either hack off again into his systems, with his fail safe switches, or hear the conversation through other means. - It wasn't until now that Terry realised that the dashboard of the Batplane had, too, a microphone, and he hadn't turned that one off.

"Yes...I blew you off" - Terry made himself appear busy, cleaning up a spot in the Batmobile, even if that wasn't what he normally did, he normally hated cleaning, but it was easier, preferable, to glancing the other man in the eyes. - "But really what was there to do? I was doing the job, and…" - He, normally so decisive, so upfront about things, couldn't bring himself to say anything about how great he thought Max was.

He didn't need to, Bruce had already figured his feelings for her long ago, perhaps even before he had realised them himself, but that was not something he knew. As it was, thought, Terry was afraid to gush over Max.

Though if Bruce had been listening to his conversations for all this month's, he already knew how much he liked her. A bunch.

"That's not the point!" - And though he hadn't raised his voice, Bruce had the presence to control the room with only his voice, Terry was sure the temperature had dropped to below freezing, he certainly felt like freezing. He had angered Bruce Wayne. And those who did normally ended up with broken bones. At least in the past. Bruce sighed. -"You've been cleaning the same spot for the past 5 minutes, it's polished already, and it stood cloaked and floating while you fought. I don't think it needs any more cleaning." - He said, a little more gently.

Terry let out a breath of relief, realising that Bruce wasn't going to hit him. He didn't think he would, Bruce had plenty of ways to get to him without resorting to the psychical, but...that was a concern of his. Even in his old age, the man could fight!

"The girl...you call Max….what is her last name, Gibson, right?" - Bruce refused to let Terry escape his gaze and penetrated him hard and deep with his gaze. Terry Gulped nervous, this wasn't how things were meant to be, but then again, nothing escaped the attention of the world's greatest detective, the one who was training him. - "Y...yes" - He admitted. Taken in by that glance that he couldn't escape.

The old man grunted, not particularly content with the situation. He turned towards the computer where he stored the audio logs from every night that the new Batman was on the streets, and oh so much more. He had plenty of space.

"You obviously care for this Gibson…" - He tried to sound uninterested, not caring. And why should he? The love life of his protegee was none of his concern. Except it was interfering with his job, and in their line of work that could easily get them killed, tortured...or worse, someone they cared about hurt.

Terry nodded, then realised that the other man couldn't see him through his focus on the computer, and he agreed verbally. Bruce Wayne's hearing might not have been what it had been one day, but he still heard it.

"Well that much is obvious...now I don't care about your pointless teenage hormones...my days of going after females, and romance are long gone." - He thought back, thought back to one cat dressed thief, and then he shook his head to get rid of it. - "No, it doesn't matter to me." - His tone went from soft to firm in about half a second, he had something to say. - "But you have sworn a duty to this city. You might have personal issues, but you have to put them aside, not only with your mother, but with those teenage hormones, and focus on the duty you have with this city. The one you call Mad Stan escaped, again, I expect you to put aside your troubling feelings and search for him tomorrow night."

Terry dutifully nodded. But, he himself couldn't help but think back to all those problems he had. What was he going to do?

 **(break)**

 ****"Terr! Awake!" - Max stood snapping her fingers at the figure of Terry Mcginnis who was slouched over the lockers, almost as if falling over. Their awkwardness and failed attempts at flirting had been forgotten in favor of this. Terry had arrived home late, from his job at , very, very late, the house empty, his mother out, his little brother in some babysitter (which had made him smile, another clue to the basket), and he had barely rested, to him from the moment he touched his pillow to the moment his wake up alarm ringed it seemed to be no more than 5 minutes.

So now he slumped and slouched over the lockers, almost falling asleep. You'd think that after almost a year of this routine Terry would be used to it, but apparently not. Max had been smarter, she had stayed to chat, but, heart at her hands, disappointment visible in her hands, she had gone to bed earlier, she could afford to do that since she wasn't a super heroine. After tossing and turning for what seemed like hours but had been only a few minutes she had fallen asleep.

She needed her rest to keep Terry awake, after all. That day she had chosen a simple indumentary that had already gotten her looks from everyone from Nash, the school bully and jock, captain of the sport's teams, to some scrawny nerd or other. She looked good in it, but then again she looked good in anything, As Terry jolted awake he gave out an appreciative sigh.

"Oh, Dana's here" - She said, not without a sore bitter note on her voice, that Terry couldn't help but miss, as he was so tired, and he was awaking."

Dana Tan might not have the curves that Max had, but she was still a figure that was not bad by any means, unlike Max's tanned skin, Dana's white as marble skin contrasted greatly with it. Terry had to admit, though he often had thoughts about Max, he was proud to have Dana with him. She had given him chance after chance after chance. Super hero work came with a lot of skipping dates and deadlines, and she was incredibly patient with him. Whenever they took a break she swore to never more, but they always ended back up together. And Terry counted his stars for it. Dana was an incredible person.

But then...he was thinking of Gibson, as Bruce had called her, or Max, as he called her, at that exact moment, even as his girlfriend showed up, in a suit that revealed a good amount of skin. Surprisingly it had been hot in Gotham the past few days, and it had not been snowing, sometimes Terry figured it snowed every day of the year, and breaks from that dull gray weather, were great.

He allowed himself to be hugged by Dana, Dana was not as tall as he was, and her light blue dress, made it so her lumps of flesh pressing against him were pretty obvious. But he was far too worried to care about it, in his face a fake smile.

"Hey Dana…" - Max spoke, ever the saving grace, she didn't know what was up with his friend, maybe he was finally seeing sense (yeah right) and seeing that his relationship with Dana was self destructive? A part of her could only hope.

But a bigger part of her, the realistic part of her, knew that to be an off chance, and when did off chances ever happen?

Max felt kind of bad about wanting their relationship to end. Terry was her friend, and so was Dana, but the truth was, well...she just didn't see them right for one another. The amount of times Terry had blown her off, even for good reasons, and the amount of times she had heard Dana complain amidst her and Chelsea, another one of her friends...she didn't understand why they kept getting back together. Could they not see?

And then of course there were her feelings for Terry...as hard as it was for her to admit it, there was something there. She was the one who knew his secret, well she had figured it out on her own and he hadn't bothered deny it, she was the one who he talked to about most problems in his life. Did Dana even know about his mother? Probably not, he kept things to himself, most of the time. She had had to dig deep. Not only into her guts, but also do her own little detective work, to figure it out.

Some might call it a tad stalkerish, to follow Terry's mom, but honestly what did they know? It wasn't as if she had creepy intentions or anything like that.

But she saw the discomfort in Terry's face and, being Dana's friend, she quickly saw fit to get her away from him, before she noticed and got hurt. That was it, she told herself.

"Yes Max?" - Dana moved her head, but her arms were still looped around the boy's chest, even if he discreetly tried to move away, It seemed as if she didn't notice it however.

Max did, though, and she smiled, her pearly white smile as she spoke.

"Could you help me with something? I'm having kind of a struggle…"

Now that was new...Max was little miss perfect, a know it all who wanted to be perfect at everything, though Dana was surprised she didn't think twice about helping out her friend.

Max winked at Terry and that was when he knew….

What with Bruce telling him to deal with his teenage hormones, his feelings for Dana dimming, and him being fully capable of trusting Max.

He had to stop this relationship. But when would be the time? Common courtesy indicated as soon as possible, but he didn't know if that would be possible, what with Dana being so overly attached.

He wanted to stop though, and take a leap of faith, he had a feeling Max might be willing, and that was his hope. Either way Max was right, he and Dana weren't meant for one another. And of course, there was also the issue of Mad Stan.

…

Soon

 **Words (According to google docs): 2139**


	3. Chapter 3

Terry Mcginnis felt that his mind was rushing on with a million thoughts, even if a large part of his body wanted to fall asleep. Either way he was distracted from school, the question wasn't _should I leave her?_ No, the question was _When Should I do it?_

It was funny, in a way, since Max had discovered his secret they had sort of danced around the issue, joked about it. It had been sort of a topic that had been brought up but dismissed as silly, Dana was a friend of both of them, it was out of the question. But then lately something had seemed to shift them forward, even closer together.

Their "work" (though the only pay that they received was the salary Terry received from Bruce, and it wasn't exactly listed as super hero pay), required them to cooperate. You'd think Bruce would be able to find the information he needed on his gigantic computers - but that was the thing, Max often did it, find the information, in about half the time, and though the old man provided useful tips about combat and more, Terry had been brushing it of more and more to have that vocal contact with Max.

Their close friendship verged on a cliff towards a fall that would lead to romance, and Terry wasn't planning on using the rocket boots to lift himself back onto friendship land. Sure, it could fail, and maybe Max would tell him no, but for his part it was ready.

He was pondering those thoughts, which at least kept him wide awake, and not asleep, something which would no doubt would have happened if he hadn't made that decision and he hadn't had to think about how to approach it.

Terry looked around from his computer, where he was supposed to do, who knew what, he was missing the instructions because he had been thinking about the two girls, and into the front of the classroom where he knew Max would be. Max always sat at the front of the classroom because she didn't have a problem with having her work checked out as, in a truthful manner, she knew it was probably going to be correct.

Dana sat further back, though not as far back as he, where he could almost comfortably sleep and he looked at her...reminding himself of all the good times which he had had with her. He still adored her greatly, how could he not? She had been his on and off (mostly due to his job) girlfriend for close to two years, and they were very close, exchanging very close secrets to one's hearts, but...it wasn't as if he could control his feelings, was it?

He pushed his phone to below the table and tried texting Max, asking just what the heck he was supposed to do in the assignment, it was a risky move, since she was in the front, but he didn't know anyone better to ask than Max. He didn't use sweet names or anything, but he did punctuate it with a smilie face.

Max must have received the notification for she saw it, quickly tapped something, and he felt his phone vibrating back, when he opened it, there was a set of simple instructions.

With 20 minutes left on the clock he realised he had spent most of the class day dreaming and trying to figure out how to tell something to Max, while trying not to break Dana's heart. He quickly booted up the pc and located the program necessary for his project and started working, if he got the necessary grade to pass it'd be a miracle.

 **(break)**

Max didn't know what was up with Terry but the fact was, he was acting out of it. Normally he'd be the one who was full of confidence, But since that last class he was acting almost...well he was acting so strangely it wasn't even funny.

First up he had texted her asking for help with his project, which was no big thing, he was usually so tired from his night dealings he had to, but he had accentuated that with a smilie face, a smiley face! And sure Max might chalk up asking up for help to tiredness, but the smilie face? It was kind of freaking her out.

She meant it...they were friends and "Smilies "were often exchanged between friends and acquaintances, she realised that, but she and Terr...well she and him had never done so, in fact she had never done so with anyone, it almost felt tainted, but it made her feel closer to him somehow.

She...kind of liked it, in fact, she decided that whenever she replied back (excluding the instructions, that were meant to be quick and simple, as he was clearly in trouble), he'd use a "Winky face" or whatever the lingo was, she was not so sure.

As she walked alongside Dana, her communication device , upgraded by herself of course, in her pocket she couldn't help but look at the gaunt and pale girl. Not that she was ever in need of food, far from it, but she was of a disposition to be thin, or so it seemed..

"Hey Dana…" - She started the conversation, To save the arse of Terry Mcginnis she had put herself in this position, pretending to need help, not that she didn't appreciate the company of Dana.

"Yes, you still need help with that project?" - Dana spread out an arm, opening up a hand, having stopped in place, which only made Max feel worse about her crush on Terry. - _She's not a bad person. -_ She thought _\- I should probably try to control how I feel…_

But, outside, she only smiled, and told her she had already made her research and was starting to figure it out. And that she'd see her later.

With a confused look in her eyes, for she had been following Max around pretty much all day and hadn't seen her pick nary a book, or tablet, and a wave Dana turned around, only to bump into Terry. Terry that with his jacket and pectorals had been headings towards them and had gotten there just as Max had gotten away. He'd have cursed his luck, but he saw this as a chance , a chance to resolve this issue with Dana alone.

Well, not so much alone, they were in front of the school and there were students and staff milling around, heading towards their cars, but at least it wouldn't be that much of a public meltdown he hoped.

"Oh, Terry…" - She immediately pushed his arms around him, though he only had eyes for where Max was heading, out of the school and down the stairs, it'd seem He looked at her. Towards the rest of the day he had decided that the sooner he left her, the better for the two of them. That way he wouldn't pretend and hurt her, and she could go and find someone who actually had her eyes set on her, and not someone else.

Though he had to admit, the hug did feel very nice, but that wouldn't remove his intent to break up with her, even when her face went to his shoulder.

Terry gently pushed her off him, making her look up at him asking him what was wrong.

"It's…" - Terry looked at her face, there was no guarantee that Max would take him, but yet he knew that it'd be cruel to be in a relationship where both parties didn't reciprocate their love. It was...how things were supposed to be. The spark had been gone. - "It's about time to know when to quit."

She gasped her hands limp at her side, not sure of how to take the information, her ears taking the words, but her brain unable to understand it.

"Are you calling it quits? Are you...are you dumping me?"

Terry bit his cheek. Then nodded.

Tears came to her eyes, he was moved but he knew from experience that any attempt to seek to comfort her would only worsen things. So he held out, in his place, the unusual for Gotham sun bathing his back and neck. He felt as if, by breaking of her heart he had been doing him a favor, that had been what he'd told himself to do it, now he was not so sure….

 **(...break)**

He must have stood there for at least 20 minutes, getting stared at. Even if if he was the one to dump her, it had still been a hard thing to do. Now he started to regain his senses and moving back towards his car, hoping that it wasn't vandalised it any way.

It wasn't, Dana had never been the vindictive kind. She'd cry her sorrows and then move on with her life, at least that's what Terry hoped for, he hoped she didn't get all hung over him.

Starting up his (Bruce's) car and driving over to Wayne Manor, the place where he had his work/workout, of the day, he couldn't help but feel a slight conflict in himself….sure he knew that he had done the right thing by getting out of a relationship that was devoid of love, at least in his part, but he was jumping into the abyss, and sure he could hit the loving relationship with Max, her teasing certainly seemed to indicate an interest, but it could be that, just teasing.

Either way what was done was done. He was sure of that, he wouldn't come groveling back to Dana. And as he did the last curve to the Manor he reached out that exact same conclusion, single, or with Max, he would be happier that way.

As soon as he got inside the Wayne Manor and descended through the secret stairway - cleverly hidden away so that only a 17 year old could find it because of a bat. - And Terry smirked at the implications, thinking it maybe destiny, but probably not, as the old man probably didn't believe in such wild things, he entered the Batcave.

"Got something to tell me?" - As always the old man was already there, he really shouldn't have, he had business meetings to, surely, the medications to take, or he ought to have been in bed resting. But Terry wasn't surprised, no, he wasn't. It seemed every time something happened in his life the old man knew about it, and cared about it, even if really didn't oughta. He was not his father, at least to his knowledge.

He attempted a weak diversion a scoff, as he moved in nearby and pushed himself closer to the computers - such power, and yet they had still been unable to track Mad Stanley. - "Just that I've yet to find Mad Stan and kick him in the…"

Terry was a teenager and his scoffing was not something to dwell at, it was just something he did a lot, and it had an impressive effect, since he had perfected it, that was until you heard a full grown man like Bruce Wayne, the former Batman do it. When Bruce Wayne scoffed you felt utterly ridiculed, you felt small - no, small was the wrong word to use. You felt miniscule.

"As you can see, I am not amused by your cheap ploys to distract me, Now I can probably figure it out on my own, but I'd rather hear it from you" - At the word 'you' he looked straight up at Terry, who felt his blood chill, and the hair at the back of his neck stand up.

 _Should I tell him?_ \- Wasn't a question that, though it went through his mind wasn't in need to be asked, of course he should tell him, he'd figure it out either way.

"I dumped Dana…" - He tensed up his fingers, curling them up as if preparing for a fight, he felt great about it, but at the same time, he expected everyone to react negatively to it, even, perhaps Max herself, though he wouldn't punch her.

"Your former girlfriend? I'm assuming this has to do with that Gibson girl?" - Batman didn't waste time with dancing and frolicking around the issue, he just cut straight to the issue, like an extremely potent laser through flesh. It stung in a similar way.

"I hum…" - Terry Mcginnis realised lying to the old man would get him nowhere. - "Yes. that is the truth."

"I see…" - There was an odd silence punctuated by the muffled beeps of the computer as it analysed data, it was still pretty early to go out and hunt for thugs, mooks, and villains. So they stood there for what seemed like hours but was no more than some minutes.

Finally the old man broke the silence.

"You're an emotional wreck...there's that thing with your mother...and now this, remember what I told you last night? To fix this issues?"

Terry nodded. Unsure of himself.

"This wasn't exactly what I meant...but no matter!" - Batman had always been quick on his wits, quick to reschedule his plans and think on the spot. - "Do you want to propose to your friend Max?"

"P...propose? Like in marriage?"

"As in propose yourself for a relationship, formally, you barely have assets as it is, why would you propose yourself to marriage, you've never even dated!" - The former Batman was losing his patience with the current Batman as it was, and that spelled trouble.

"Do you want to or not? Do not play with a woman's heart, those are fickle things"

"I was sort of planning on letting her become a cyber criminal, to be more in line with the 21st century, then chase her around and sort of catching her, and she sort of saves my a...I mean me, sometimes, and we end up on a do we, don't we?" - Terry said, jovially, but one look into the old man's eyes told him that joke would cost him dearly.

"I did not find that funny, Mcginnis, now clean this all up." - It was clear, though his tone had not changed, he hadn't seen the humor in the situation.

Terry cleaned up, as a sort of "punishment" he would guess, the best he could, all the while thinking about his mess of a situation. Hoping for all that was worth that he hadn't ruined things with Bruce with that joke about the former thief, he approached, after being done with his work.

"Hey Bruce…"

"It's Mr Wayne, Mcginnis"

"Right, sorry, hey, Mr Wayne?"

Bruce Wayne, billionaire, and former hero looked at his trainee, seeing himself in him in a lot of ways, he started typing away at the computers but kept an eye on Terry, a skill he had developed with Alfred, having known how to look at Alfred and still type.

"Yes, Mcginnis" - he still typed, but his face was closed, giving no indication of an expression besides when he talked.

"With girls...or I guess with women in general….what's the best way of…."

The former Batman sighed.

"I never had much luck in that aspect." - Finally a hint of an expression on him, though it was quickly hidden away. - "But in general treating them as human beings, respecting their feelings and more, it does help." - Batman suddendtly focused his eyes on the screen.

"It seems there is a disturbance on the waves"

"You came dangerously close to making a reference there." - Terry was smiling.

"You'll drop your smile once you hear what I'm saying next." - Bruce's voice was controlled, but his expression demostrated worry. - "Mad Stanley has been spotted, he seems to be heading towards…"

But Bruce didn't have to finish it. Terry had already guessed it just from the map and arrows. Max was in danger.

"Hit me up on the communicator."

"Don't do anything rash, or to reveal your identity"

"'Course not" - Terry's smile was through grinded teeth.

"And, if you really want to, call max, but put the batmobile on an automatic course. Don't drive and text. Or call in this case."

"I'll do that."

"Good luck"

Mr Wayne sighed, before letting him go, he knew how hard this must be for the new vigilante. He went to the screen, ready to guide him.

Terry picked up his phone and called Max, there were several rings, then the line went still, dead, she could be just busy, in fact that could be the more likely outcome.

But it didn't hurt to stop the menace and check up on her and tell her his feelings right?

He picked up the controllers and accelerated.

 **Words (according to google docs): 2780**

 **Author's notes: So this chapter was an emotional rollercoaster that's sure to upset a lot of people. Me included, the truth is - and this is the honest truth - I've struggled to write it. Between my emotional state changing to a better one (but since most of my Batman Beyond stuff is based on angst), internet problems that got in the way of writing the chapter whenever I did get an idea, and this overall just changing to a more romantic centered story instead of character centered in my opinion...yeah.**

 **So Dana's out of the way, and now Terry has to save Max, how will this turn out? I tried originally making this a 3 parter, but it seems it'll be longer than that. We'll see how it turns out.**

 **Also good riddance this is a long author note. Have a good night/evening/morning/afternoon/whenever you're reading and thank you for reading so far.**


	4. Chapter 4

The Neo Gotham Vigilante's heart beat hard as it raced faster than the vehicle where he was. A truly impressive thing when one considered how the Batmobile had been improved and revised dozens of times over the years. Whenever a new technology appeared so it was integrated. It was integrated with cameras, visors, infrareds and microphones. It allowed near instant communication between Batman and the Batcave, and it could be remotely turned off in case of theft. While that had been the beginning of the relationship, it was through the computers down in the Batcave that Bruce Wayne, former Batman and definitive grump observed and saw what Terry saw.

His heart was accelerated, which was no surprise when one considered just who was in he himself had admitted to never having had much luck with the ladies Bruce had for moments felt the cruel sting of love, Selina - and later Thalia, had touched him in ways no other woman had. As Bruce wayne he had dated and screwed plenty of women - it helped him maintain the persona of Playboy millionaire, but as Batman he had loved. The Neo Batsuit gave him every detail, he could see every muscle and every beat of the young man's heart. McGiniss was tense, that much was clear. His body temperature was elevated and though that could be attributed to the feelings, there was also another underlying cause. The batsuit was perfectly well suited. Its fabric was strong enough to withstand bullets yet it was moldable and held perfectly to the body of whomever wore it. Bruce knew it to not be environmental factors causing the sweat he could detect, or the tension in the muscles, or even the scowl in the face of the young troublemaker. No, it was that girl, Maxine Gibson. And honestly, though Bruce still maintained that his head should be in the job, not on girls, he couldn't blame him. Making sure the microphone wasn't pressed, so as to not show weakness he sighed. It wasn't the first time a Batman got into trouble due to feminine charms. Were he not in mission control he'd remind himself of all the femme fatales who had tried to usher him into a trap...

(break)

If the vehicle didn't have such good suspension that when he flew he couldn't feel it shaking or vibrating through the air, then in all likelihood he would have ground his teeth into a powder. Even so he grinded them with such strength it was a wonder he didn't chip them. Along with the veins he knew to be protruding through his arm even if he couldn't see them, that made him realise just how angry he was.

Old man Wayne, Bruce, the Bats, whatever he wanted to call him had always told him to clear his head and assess the situation. Even when everything and everyone were against him, he should keep that on the back of his mind and focus on the task at hand. And Bruce should know, he had shared some details about something called CADMUS. Yet, quite honestly Terry didn't know if he would be able to do that.

It wasn't as if he were going to simply ignore the situation, no, of course not. Max was in danger, that was a problem. He had the solution in his suit-enhanced punches. He was going to make Mad Stan pay for his actions, or attempts at action. Yet if the old man expected him to take it calmly he had another thing coming.

He was sure he was going to listen to another earful if he proceed as he planned, but it wasn't as if he could quite help it. In his mind there was no room for coherent thought, or logic, he wasn't about to engage in the shadows, striking fear in the heart of criminals. No, he was a young offender, a brawler. Words meant nothing, and so did subtle movements through the darkness. He'd just let his fists do the talking. No matter how many times the old man tried to instil the "Dark Knight" senses into him, that didn't mean much when the ones he cared about were in danger and Max...or as Bruce had put it, that Gibson girl, she definitely was in that list.

Despite the Bat's vehicle being amongst the fastest there was, almost as fast as the Flash, or a flying Kryptonian he still felt it too slow. A growl was building in the back of his throat as he felt the urge to put his fist through the panels, hitting them. It wasn't as if they would break, but still a mouthful from Max - who'd exclaim the wonders of the technology, as well as Bruce, who had poured in the dollars stopped him from doing so.

Who knew what else Max was doing at the moment? His phone call had dropped, he hadn't been able to connect. He hoped she were somewhere safe, but he knew better, even in the 2030's few building could whistand the blasts of the kind of bombs Mad Stan had. The explosives had also seen an upgrade in their potency, and most of Gotham hadn't been rebuilt, no, rather they were old buildings, hundreds or dozens of years old and repurposed with flashy- but weak - paint and addictions.

The fact that they were friends meant that the Neo-Batman didn't have to ask to input her name on the computer to find where she lived. Though in the state he was in he had done just that. The Automatic Pilot of the Batmobile was an asset that Terry knew he could count on, and, with his mind in the state it was in, he felt thankful for it. Max was one hell of a girl, but the fact was she wasn't bullet or explosion proof. And a nagging worry - as well as a inconsumable rage, were starting to build in his head.

It was a lot like a pressure in his skull, a headache as it added up to the lack of sleep and teenage romantic hijinks he had had that very same day just seemed to never end. And while he was used to pulling nights - talking to Mr Wayne or - more often than not - Max was at least a distraction from the dull ache that built in his muscles. The suit helped - it was an engineering marvel after all, but still he was only human. No matter how much of a reputation and figure the Bat was to criminals around the city, and a symbol of hope for the common people, Terry was little more than a teenager. He knew how to fight, sure, and he had the best mission control imaginable, but still, just a kid, as Mr Wayne had put it.

It wasn't until he had no one to talk to that the tiredness had begun to show. He might stumble in the mornings, but usually the nights were the fun parts, he got to thrash goons and serve justice while doing it. If there was anything that he could say it was that it wasn't tedious - in fact it made his heart beat faster and faster. He usually loved it, it was the thrill of a street fighter mixed with the sense of justice of doing the right thing. But then usually the goons didn't even approach those he cared about.

The trip seemed to last for an eternity but the clock indicated otherwise, as he approached the center of Gotham, near a residential area no more than 20 minutes had passed. It wasn't very long in the grand scheme of things, but it was long enough for Terry to imagine a million and one scenarios, most of which didn't end well for Max. It was maddening knowing that even if he had the speed advantage Mad Stan had the proximity advantage. It was a race, a wicked, spine chilling one.

While the old rogue gallery of villains, the ones who his mentor had faced were clever ones. Deceitful and eager to try and confuse and illude, Terry found that none of that cleverness was present with Mad Stan. The clue was in the name, really. While he had fought shape shifters, and those who could change his perception, it was Mad Stan who worried him more, when it came to him getting close to someone he cared about. Because he had no motive, he had no plan and he had no goal. He was, quite literally mad as a hatter.

And while Commissioner Gordon did her best, Barbara wasn't really in such a spot where she could do much more. She did her job, her police force, with a little help of Terry, caught the criminals. No, the problem was when they escaped. Arkham Asylum had been closed for decades, and yet the prisoners weren't held any more tightly. They kept escaping, and that was a bane in Terry's sleep. He did not know the reason - going to investigate, invisible, he had seen the great big hole in the cell - but Mad Stan kept running and running. It wasn't as if he was particularly smart, or at least he didn't appear so, but he was good with the home made devices. And he could craft bombs out of most anything.

Terry sighed. The pressure in his shoulders seemed enormous. It wasn't like back at school where, while he wasn't exactly the most popular guy he handled stuff, with the help of his tech wiz and friend. No, it was as if he couldn't relax. And with the day he had had, he'd like to relax.

It was anger that propelled him forward and it was anger that helped push his movements forward. He docked and landed the batmobile, turning it invisible. So far he had heard none of the screams or booms associated with Mad Stanley, but he knew better than to be relieved at the fact he had arrived first. _If_ indeed he had done so, then that was good, but by no means solved his problem.

Attaching himself to the walls Terry started climbing. The vehicle he had driven, or rather been driven itself was remarkably quiet, and it would take someone who was playing quite an intent attention to notice any so he didn't expect Max, if she were alright, to be expecting him. Not even the sensors she had placed in her room, from her half a dozen crazy science projects could detect the Batmobile, at least, not that he knew of, he wouldn't put it past her to manage at some point. He felt sheepish as he approached the window, the thought that he'd been intruding on the privacy of his crush quite clear in his head. Not that he had noticed that Mad Stan hadn't exactly gotten Max he allowed himself time to think. As much as he wished to pummel Mad Stan's face, his priority was clear, get Max to safety.

The plan wasn't a hundred percent clear in his head, but one thing was certain in his mind. This situation, with him peering on her window, ready to enter and check for her safety was not at all like all the times they had web chatted, or video chatted. There was a certain sense of invasion of privacy as he pondered the best point of entry. Sure, she had shown him her house a couple times, mostly on study sessions, but that did not give him an intrinsic knowledge of the building.

Luckily for him, though, the scanner in his mask could see through walls. In fact he had the whole layout of the building in the corner of his sight as it had been pulled from Gotham's Archives. Thanking technology for keeping everything connected, and even more so the old man for developing such fast decrypting tools he picked a point of entry. He was certain that what he was doing was the right thing, as certain as he was that explaining his wild heartbeat would be hard to do to Mr Wayne. He hadn't even entered a combat scenario yet.

Getting in was easier than expected, and he had no trouble finding his way around. The lights were on, and there was the delicious smell of cooked noodles coming from what he knew to be the kitchen. It was late, and Terry couldn't see Max's heatwaves in the division, so he figured that to be the rest of her dinner. Seemed some things never changed - while he was more of a fan of Pizza, something he had taken to ordering more and more as his mother seemed distracted - noodles were at the bottom of a college student's food pyramid. With the voice of Mr Wayne telling him to be careful he advanced. Steps muffled, and figure invisible, he didn't fear being caught, but he was cautious nevertheless.

That was when he found her, she had quite clearly fallen asleep against her best efforts. Her chin was on top of a computer's keyboard, her main one, and about 300 pages of "I" had been typed and still ongoing, on the floor was her cell, which he assumed her to have been holding. It was simultaneously the most adorable and dorky vision of Max he had ever seen. And he hated to break it.

Turning himself visible, Terry thought about pulling down the mask, but choose to keep it in case someone showed up. She knew who he was either way. To be this close to Max was tantalizing, she looked so frail, in her sleep. None of that "Strong girl" attitude she projected. Even with the Winter boots and the clothes that would be fit for a punk. He loved her sense of style.

He shook her shoulder, and she mumbled something technical in nature. Unsure of what exactly she meant, and aware that Mr Wayne was observing his every movement he kept gently shaking her until she awoke, she didn't seem very aware of her surroundings however.

"Mmmh, Terr?", she asked recognising the hooded figure, any other girl would have screamed at the sight, but to her it was only the figure of her best friend. With what appeared to be half her brain shut off she didn't even try to be snarky, she was just confused. "What's going o-"

A loud noise was heard and she buried her head in between Terry's shoulders. That had jolted her wide awake, whatever was coming had broken into her apartment, and Terry was there, in his suit, she was quick to make the math she was in danger. She felt no urge to scream, as she knew Terry to be near her, and thinking him more than ready to handle the situation but that didn't mean she didn't feel scared. Her heart beat at a thousand miles per minute and she had the strange thought that Terr could probably hear it.

As debree settled, her computer probably ruined but her figure and body safe, she let go. The eyes of the suit had turned to slits. Terry seemed very, very angry. She stared at him. Trying to give him the encouragement.

"Don't worry", he said, the growl that had been growing in his throat all night coming out. "I got this."

And, just from the way his shoulders stood tall, and his chest puffed, she was ready to believe it.

The fight was on 

**Author's notes: So the last time this updated was on July 23rd 2016, and, seeing as we're in** **March of 2018** **there was quite a break in between chapters, huh? A lot of things contributed to the fact, and after over 90 oneshots or chapters in other works, I realised I felt capable of finishing this. Something I didn't quite feel prepared or capable of doing at the time. As you can probably guess in those (almost) two years my writing has changed quite a bit. Still I hope you enjoy it. If you any commentary, criticism, or thought, leave a review. Thank you.**


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